Epic Reads for Teens

Tag Archives: Lunar Chronicles

The conclusion to Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles series finds Princess Selene/Cinder and friends scheming their way to Luna to attempt to take Levana’s throne. Frustrated at the lack of control she has on Earth, Levana agrees to host the royal wedding on Luna, where she can manipulate the Earthens and secure her borders as she sees fit. Though Cinder sees the wedding as the perfect (and only) opportunity to infiltrate Luna, the crew’s plans are quickly thwarted by obstacles in the Lunar court. Amid a myriad of captures, betrayals, and death threats, Cinder and Co. must pull together with the people of Luna if they have any chance of victory.

Blerg. I had SUCH high hopes for this book and it turned out to be the weakest in the series. It’s not that the book was bad, but it certainly wasn’t as good as I expected it to be given the strength of the earlier installments. For me, way too much was going on in the story. The book is almost 1,000 pages, and I felt a good 300 or so could have been cut. The same conflicts and situations were occurring over and over again. These were exciting scenarios the first time, but I was tired of them by the third or so repeat. Also, Princess Winter was completely annoying. It may not have helped that I listened to the audiobook version of the novel and the reader did this cloying, saccharine voice for her that just grated on me. Even so, Winter did nothing for me as a character, and, aside from refusing to use her gift, she did nothing for herself either. Don’t get me wrong, this book has some GREAT parts and is a very satisfying, well-thought end to the series. But it’s not the strongest piece at all.

The third installment in Meyer’s re-imagined fairy tale series finds Cinder united with allies Scarlett and Wolf, still a fugitive from Earth and desperately trying to stop Queen Levana’s plans. This time, Cinder seeks help from a Lunar programmer, Cress, who has been trapped in an orbiting satellite for most of her life. But Cinder’s and Cress’ plans for escape and rebellion take a deadly turn, leaving the group in shambles. The rebels must find their way back to one another and rescue Emperor Kai before Levana’s plans come to fruition.

I LOVED this book! I wasn’t super enthused with the second book, Scarlet (mostly because I didn’t care for Scarlet that much), but this one was SO much better. Cress is just amazing! She’s funny, smart, and her lovesick obsession with Thorne is heartbreaking and cute at the same time. Definitely don’t miss this one if you’re a fan of the series!

In the second book of the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder finds herself trapped in prison and scheduled for execution at the hands of Lunar queen, Levana. What’s more, she was recently told that, not only is she Lunar, but she is (allegedly) the lost Lunar princess, Celene. In another part of the world, Scarlet Benoit is searching for her grandmother. She finds a mysterious stranger, Wolf, who claims he wants to help, but the more involved he becomes, the more complicated Scarlet’s path gets. Scarlet finds that her grandmother has secret ties to the Lunars, a discovery that only confuses her more. As Scarlet attempts to connect the threads of her grandmother’s past, Cinder struggles to break out of prison and find the truth in her identity. Unbeknownst to each girl, their paths will soon cross in most unexpected ways.

Can’t lie — this was NOT my favorite book in this series. I LOVE Cinder, but Scarlet was just so boring to me. I really needed less of her chapters. Once their paths start to intertwine, things start to pick up and get much better, but it takes a while to get there. However, as much as I was bored with Scarlet, I loved reading the parts with Levana. She’s just so evil! I’m very excited to see what happens with her in the next books. It will be quite satisfying to see Cinder bring her down. So, while I wasn’t impressed with this one, I care about the characters enough to keep going.

The resented adopted daughter of a once wealthy family, Cinder must earn her keep in the family by working as a mechanic. But though Cinder is exceptional at her job, it is still impossible to earn her stepmother, Audrey’s, favor. First, Audrey believes Cinder is the cause of her husband’s death, and, second, because Cinder is a cyborg — part human, part machine. But it’s Cinder’s mechanical capabilities that make her such a great mechanic. So great, in fact, that the prince of the Empire himself comes to ask for Cinder’s help fixing an android. Prince Kai is the most eligible bachelor in the land, and Cinder can’t help but feel drawn to him. She must fight her feelings, though, because a prince could never love a cyborg. What’s more, the evil Queen Levana from planet Luna has arrived to try to stake her claim on Earth. Somehow, Cinder must help the prince, avoid the visiting queen, and escape from her family before it’s too late.

Wow! This one was amazing! I have to confess that I wasn’t sure if I would like the fairy-tale-robot twist, but it was actually really good. Cinder is a great character and one you really want to see win over her enemies. In fact, all of the female characters in this book are amazing. Queen Levana and Audrey are so evil that you just have to love them. And Icho is possibly the most entertaining character I’ve ever read. If you’re looking for a great new Sci-Fi series, this is it!